David
LightNews LightNews
banner
duckinwales.bsky.social
David
@duckinwales.bsky.social
120 followers 160 following 100 posts
North Wales based fern & lycophyte botherer (VC51); biological recorder working on Quillworts & Honduran Fern Flora. ♥️ botany, libraries, maps, books, education and nature. #FernFriday🪴
www.britishfernsociety.org.uk
FLS, BPS secretary & Cofnod LRC chair.
Posts Replies Media Videos
duckinwales.bsky.social
A bit of urban ferning last #FernFriday whilst walking through Warwick, the beautiful winter fronds of an urban Pteridium aquilinum (Bracken)
Chocolate brown fronds if bracken that have died back for the winter, against a brown wooden fence and blue road sign saying Oken Road.
December 7, 2025 at 6:16 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A #fernFriday friend this week. Selaginella involvens, a sub tropical lycophyte from South east Asia #BritishFernSociety #BPS #RBGE
Strobili (reproductive cones) and microphylls (proto-leaves) of Selaginella involvens.
November 28, 2025 at 7:19 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Something a bit warmer for this #FernFriday. Sticheropsis truncata, an upland fern from Indonesia. The fronds appear to fork, but actually extend continuously, with a hidden bud in the fork allowing the plant to spread out seeking light in forest gaps. #BritshFernSociety #BPS #RBGE
Thin green bifurcating fronds with small pinna climbing out into the space between tropical plants at the #RBGE
November 21, 2025 at 7:57 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Osmunda regalis 'Cristata' (Crested Royal Fern) still looking very green in the protected cloisters of Chester Cathedral #FernFriday #BritishFernSociety
Green crested pinnules of a Royal fern Green pinnules and brown spent sporangia of Royal fern
November 15, 2025 at 8:50 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A great morning at Edge Hill University yesterday; students receive their Plant Heritage National Collection status for their collection of native and naturalised ferns. (Nice to see some of my plants on display too). Nice to see a young thriving plant horticulture group. #BritishFernSociety
Five students with their Plant Heritage award in fron of their University fern garden. A student explaining the contents of a Wardian case to visitors.
November 9, 2025 at 9:07 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Fern with a view. Asplenium ruta-muraria (Duegredynen y muriau/Wall Rue) at home on the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct overlooking the River Dee, Denbighshire. #FernFriday #BritishFernSociety
A small fern in the lower third of the picture, above the River Dee and autumn trees.
November 7, 2025 at 7:59 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A great long weekends ferning in the Moffat area of Scotland, finishing at a British Pteridological Society members garden. Struthiopteris (Blechnum) spicant 'Rickard's serate' #fern #FernFriday #BritishFernSociety
October 24, 2025 at 9:06 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Tis fungi season 🙂. We briefly get to see a whole other kingdom of life that we don't see for the rest of the year ( other than on the supermarket shelf).
October 14, 2025 at 5:33 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Not your usual wall fern. A stunning multi-crowned Royal fern (Osmunda regalis) in a metaquartz wall top. A sign condition must be pretty damp! #FernFriday
Large bi-pinnate (twice divided) green and brown fronds on top of a white and grey wall.
October 10, 2025 at 11:11 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Fungi and ferns, the perfect combination on a damp weekend. Amanita muscaria & Polypodium cf. vulgare on Betula.
#fernFriday #Coniston #LakeDistrict
Two orange red fly agaric mushrooms at the base of a birch tree, along with a small clump of epiphytic Polypodium ferns.
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Dermatocarpon miniatum (Leather lichen) on a hard Carboniferous limestone outcrop at Denbigh Castle #ValeOfClwyd
Pale grey two lobed roughly circular lichen on a vertical limestone wall
September 22, 2025 at 5:36 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A productive couple of hours scouring a shoreline in the rain and sifting through hundreds of broken specimens. Managed to find a handful of #Isoetes quills 😊 and a few invasive non-natives 🙁. #Quillwort
A hand holding half a dozen pieces of Quillwort (an aquatic lycophyte) Yellow flowers stretching away into the distance, with a lake and rainclouds beyond.
September 10, 2025 at 4:16 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Stopped to pick up this beautiful adult Tawny Owl today (RTA fatality) mainly to check for a ring and have a close look at such a stunning bird.
A gloved hand holding the wing of a deceased Tawny owl.
August 27, 2025 at 8:21 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A nice find in the charity shop: The Flora of Svalbard by Olaf Rønning 1996. Maybe not the most up to date taxonomically but nice maps and community descriptions. #Svalbard #NatureBookChallenge #botany
Photograph of a book cover with white and yellow flowers in a Svalbard landscape.
August 16, 2025 at 12:38 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Acid heath over Dalradian limestone next to the sea, including Harebells and virtually adjacent Grass of Parnassus; Port Ramsay, #IsleOfLismore #HarebellChallenge #Wildflowerhour
Acid heath on a slope including heather and Harebells in flower. A tidal island with mirror calm sea, Isle of Lismore A Grass of Parnassus flower bud and leaves.
July 21, 2025 at 4:12 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
An exhausting day immersed in nature. Leeches, snails, lichens, clubmosses, flowers and fish. Time for bed! #IsleOfLismore #BiologicalRecording #Scotland
The island of Eilean Dubh in evening light, with the Scottish Highlands behind and a calm sea in front.
July 15, 2025 at 9:32 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A slightly surprising find today, Lobaria pulmonaria (non-fertile) on an old dying Fushia magellanica
#IsleOfLismore #lichen #lismore @britishlichensociety.org.uk
A green irregularly shaped lichen with a netted surface. Lichens on a thin branch of a dying Fushia
July 14, 2025 at 6:34 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Finally, a wet day and chance to write up some holiday observations #biologicalRecording
#IsleOfLismore
A kitchen table covered with various items including a notebook, sketchpad, mug, books, cameras, torch and binoculars.
July 14, 2025 at 9:23 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Any malacologists out there able to confirm this is Wireweed? Didn't bring my seaweed books on hols, DOH!!! #IsleofLismore
Underwater image of a brown finely divided seaweed. Underwater image of a brown finely divided seaweed.
July 13, 2025 at 1:45 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Looks a good match, although I've only seen it once (one of Mary Gibby's original finds that was in the open but now under a dense conifer canopy). Your picture matches Jess et al's picture pretty well!
Jess et al 2011 paper image (translation my own, hopefully correct!) of pinnule morphology of Dryopteris lacunosa.
July 8, 2025 at 4:20 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Top marks Dan and Dave, running 10 Park runs for charity, currently running no 8, #Ruthin and it's 27 degrees!!! For Move against Cancer.
June 21, 2025 at 4:30 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A nice unexpected find on the walk home this evening, a Mountain male fern (Dryopteris oreades), a rather fine looking garden plant #UrbanPlants #ferns #Rhuthun #Rhedyn
An upright mid-green pinnate fern poking through a weathered brown and grey picket fence.
June 17, 2025 at 7:23 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
A Male fern (Dryopteris filix-mas) brightening up the local streets #UrbanPlants #FernFriday
June 15, 2025 at 7:50 PM
duckinwales.bsky.social
Nice, a new @rbgkew.bsky.social book in the library should provide some good lunchtime reading 😊 #LibrariesChangeLives
Picture of a book, 'The Ethno Botanical' on a desk.
May 20, 2025 at 10:52 AM
duckinwales.bsky.social
After urban botanising in the morning, retreated to a lovely wet woodland LNR on Ynys Môn. A lovely Dryopteris understory (all the affinis group) plus a established garden throw outs including a Western Sword fern!
@cofnod.org.uk #CommonLand #YnysMôn #Fern #inns
A woodland shrub layer in various shades of green, with different ferns and brambles. A hand holding the base of a green frond in dappled sunlight.
May 18, 2025 at 7:40 AM